The Simple Life
by Weirdo.Blabber
Summary: Running away from an arranged marriage with someone she doesn't know, Lucy travels to another country for some peace and quiet alone. But 'alone' is not what she gets when she is greeted by a mysterious beauty who claims to be her guardian. What adventures should be expected when rich girl Lucy steps into the simple life of country bum Gray?
1. Desperate measures for desperate times

**Chapter One:**

Lucy Heartfilia stomped furiously. A string of unintelligible complaints tumbled out from her mouth, her clenched jaw gritting pearly white teeth, and her blonde hair gracefully falling behind her footfalls. It was rare for her to be angry—she was, in fact, very polite, kind, and cheerful—but an arranged marriage was not something she could easily forgive… _especially _when she had no clue about who the person is.

The girl's feet were carrying her around a maze of cream-colored halls, the carpeted floor muting her heavy steps. She passed by a few household staff who bowed and greeted her as was the custom but she paid them no heed. She continued to trudge down a familiar route she was sure would lead to her father's study. She stopped, breathed in deeply, straightened her back and opened the door in a tougher manner than she had initially planned.

As was expected, Jude Heartfilia stared at her, his eyebrows shooting up upon the surprise visit of his only child. He looked at her with a bemused look, stopping the scribbling he was doing on a piece of paper. He pushed the documents away and pursed his lips when Lucy held up a simple bouquet.

"I don't know what you expect to hear when what you're doing makes the slightest bit of sense," Jude said firmly. There was a hint of affection in his voice but Lucy shook it off. She was angry and she needed that anger to get her point across.

"A bouquet from the Davis Corporation. It had a card attached to it saying, '_To our future daughter-in-law_'." She put her extended hand down and pinched her eyebrows closer. "Is there something you're not telling me, father?"

"The Davis Corporation has been our long-time family friend and business partners. I don't see the reason why you're so against the thought of marrying into their family." Jude laced his fingers together and retaliated to Lucy's pinched eyebrows by pinching his own. He leaned in closer to her and added, "You haven't even met their heir and yet you're already being so difficult about all this."

"But that's _exactly _why I'm being so difficult about things," she said. "Father, I am a twenty-three-year-old lady living in the twenty-first century. I don't see why you need to subject me into something as one-sided as an arranged marriage!"

"What would you rather have me do?" he asked, "Wait for you to be active in the company matters and prepare to inherit it from me? Because I don't see that happening any time soon…"

Jude's words made Lucy bite her lower lip. She _did _want to inherit the company her parents worked so hard to build; just _not now_… not this way. She wanted to explore her youth; go on adventures; _fall in love at her own pace_. She had so many things to do that surpassed taking over the family business in terms of gravity.

"The wedding's already decided. You can't turn back now—"

"_No! You can't make me do this!"_

"But _I can_," he said, "You don't really think I'm choosing someone to marry you without considering your tastes, do you? Here's a photo—"

"I don't need it!" she bellowed, the first time she has ever done to her father. Both were shocked. Lucy gasped, guilt starting to surface on her face; Jude was taken aback, obviously not expecting the sudden outburst. Lucy's lips pursed into a straight line and she took a step back. "I—I'm sorry, father… I… I need to be alone…"

She turned her back and ran out of the room.

It took a surprisingly small time for her to run up to the second floor and lock herself in her room. Information overload and guilt were giving her a migraine. She sat at the foot of her queen-sized bed with a blank look on her face. Her father is a gentle creature; so why was he doing something as ridiculous as getting Lucy wed? She couldn't make sense of things.

She hasn't been able to ever since her mother died. Layla had always been the one to explain everything to her and now that she's gone, her relationship with her father has been undergoing some straining circumstances.

_Oh, mum… Please tell me what to do…_

Lucy turned to her bedside table and reached for a framed photo of her family. She looked at it with longing, her hands brushing softly against the clear glass: Layla and Jude were beaming at her; a smaller, younger version of herself holding up two huge mangoes that they had gotten one harvest time.

The Heartfilia family had a lot of overseas properties, but they had one villa in another country which Layla had always been fond of: acres and acres of land that were covered with mango trees from end to end. It was a place near the outskirts of a huge city, in between mountain ranges and a sea. Peace and quiet would be an assurance and so Layla would always take Lucy there when she wanted to think—contemplate.

Something Lucy herself needed now.

An idea like a light bulb lit up in Lucy's brain. If she couldn't stop the wedding by being difficult… she could disappear, right? It wasn't the best plan, but it was her only plan now.

Desperate times call for desperate measures.

* * *

"Come in."

"Mister Heartfilia, it seems the young lady has left on the jet earlier this evening. We have yet to confirm her exact destination but it doesn't look like anywhere close to home."

"I know where she's going…" Jude sighed at his daughter's stubbornness. It was scary how he'd predicted Lucy's actions, though he secretly hoped she wouldn't be so easy to read. "She's going to the mango farm."

The butler sighed, himself. "Shall we go and make preparations to take her back?"

"No…" Jude said, "Just get me Gray Fullbuster on the phone. I'll handle the rest…"

No more questions were asked as the servant left his master's study, only to return moments later with a phone in hand. Jude took the phone and immediately smiled when he heard the voice of the speaker at the other end of the line.

"Mister Heartfilia, it has been a while, hasn't it?" said the voice, manly and rough.

"Hello, Gray. It has," he said. "How is the farm doing?"

"Mangoes are in season and we're getting a pretty fine harvest," Gray said, "But I'm sure you're not calling because of the mangoes, are you?"

"As perceptive as always… Actually, Gray, my Lucy is coming over there and I don't really know for how long."

A small silence was heard, and then Gray spoke, "Is something the matter?"

"No, nothing… Things are fine. But I'm asking you to please take care of my daughter."

Jude thought he could hear Gray smirk. "You can count on it, Mister Heartfilia."

* * *

**WEIRDO BLABBS: **New concept that's been bugging me ever since summer. I haven't put it into words because, well, I wanted to finish 'Going, Going, Gone' before I actually started a new one. Of course I'm still going to continue writing GGG but because of lack of reader interest and feedback, I will be putting it on hold.

Anyway, I hope you all like this story, Wrote it on a whim because of boredom. I dunno if I will be continuing this, it all depends on the reader feedback I get. Hahaha! Anyway, hope you like it!

**R & R!**

_Please support my collab fanfiction with WolfieAnne,__** The Last Celestial Mage**__, and maybe my other FT fanfictions: __**Going, Going, Gone; Another Shot at Love, Good Taste, Massage?, Girls and Shopping **__and __**Starstruck!.**_

_If you are interested in my other works not stated above, please go to my FanFiction profile: /~weirdoblabber_


	2. Probably a sadist

**READ THIS BEFORE PROCEEDING: **After being incapable of constructing a world with its own culture and language, I have decided to make use of what I have for this story. **THOUGH NOT EXPLICITLY, the culture and language of the Philippines** will appear in this story time and again. If you have any comments, suggestions, violent reactions, volcanic eruptions about it, please PM me. **NO BASHING. I am but a weird wannabe-writer.**

**Disclaimer: **We do not own Fairy Tail. We are sorry. We will eat now.

**Chapter Two:**

The climate in the tropics was well above a foreigner's comfort level. One hour after stepping off their private jet and Lucy's peach sleeveless top was already starting to stick to her back, drenched in sweat. It took about ten minutes riding in the air-conditioned taxi for her to feel comfortable again.

Getting a taxi was rather difficult, though. Lucy wasn't expecting the extreme language barrier, as most of the chauffeurs seemed to speak little to no English, and she did not speak the vernacular either. No amount of hand gestures and emphasis on the syllables got through to the first three she encountered; thankfully, the fourth one understood her fast slang and he stuffed her suitcases in the trunk of the car and Lucy got on, relieved to finally feel the cool gust coming from the airconditioner.

"Do you know the way to Hacienda Lucky?" she remembered saying. Maybe it was her accent and her blonde hair that scared them off, and not necessarily the language barrier. Often, people would tell her that she was scary and bitchy upon first glance.

"Uhm... Miss, what brings you to our country?" asked the chauffer, hair thinning and several silver strands peeking through lush black ones. It had already been thirty minutes into the ride; the city looked far now and the trees were starting to dominate the landscape, the sky painted with blotches of pink, purple and orange in the setting sun.

"_Vacation_," she lied.

The man was surprisingly interested and continued, "Well, you are in the right place." His accent was horrible but Lucy didn't mind. She was already feeling comfortable around him. "Is this your first time? Here?"

"No... I used to come here at least twice a year when I was young."

"Oh," was the only reply she got.

"My mother used to always take me... But she's gone now."

Another 'oh'.

They were silent after that, and the chauffer steered the vehicle to the right to an uphill path. At this point, Lucy started to reminisce.

After all, the scenery was painfully familiar: the gravely path, the shrub-lined road, tall trees of various kinds on both sides thinning as the residential homes started to pop one after another. And of course, how could Lucy forget the ancient cemetery on the right side of the road? She smiled bitter-sweetly as they passed it by.

It only meant one thing...

Lucy looked ahead and, as she remembered it, a huge, old sign above them said 'Hacienda Lucy'. Well, it would have said '_Lucky'_ but it was a letter off because of age and deterioration.

The car followed the path to a clearer area of land enclosed in an endless array of peeling yellow walls. The sky was starting to completely color itself a pale hue of blue now and house after house, the lights were turning on. As they were let in through the gates, Lucy could register the sound of crickets in her ears and the distant singing of men not sober. The sweet smell of freshly-picked fruit could be picked apart from the distinct smell of country air.

The blonde smiled, content. Peace and quiet in solitude was indeed something she needed more than anything.

"Ah, please stop here," she said to the chauffer when he stopped in front of the villa. The man obeyed and parked parallel to the front steps. After dropping off her things, Lucy gave him the fee for his services and he bid her goodbye after offering her his contact information should she need transportation in the duration of her stay.

Lucy had a huge smile plastered on her face as she stepped off the vehicle. The villa, though time had taken its toll on the white walls and the red tiled roof, the flower shrubs that lined the front of the home, and the open wooden windows, it was still as homey as Lucy had remembered it from several years back.

Unknowingly, she had been staring for far too long.

Some excited chattering in vernacular caused Lucy to snap out of her admiration; she heard her name in a hard, nasal accent.

"_Miss Lucy_?!" called one middle-aged lady in a loose t-shirt and maroon skirt. She was running toward the blonde in an excited manner, her hair falling off the bun on her head. "It really is _you_, my _goodness_!"

The blonde didn't know what to do when the lady pulled her into a hug; Lucy had to bend lower to the woman's height for it.

The woman yelled something in vernacular, and waved her hands as if calling someone. Sure enough, a few young ladies came and greeted Lucy as well, all excited upon by her presence.

"She looks like _Miss Layla_," said one in the dialect. Lucy couldn't understand but she smiled anyway when they mentioned her late mother.

It was a brief moment of chaos, excited chattering in a foreign language ringing in Lucy's ears. She could distinctly hear her and her mother's name in between the strings of the words she didn't understand. It took a while for them to calm down, although it happened in quite a hushed and nervous manner, as if they were forced to be silenced. Each was nudging an elbow to silence the other. Everyone fell quiet.

All eyes, including Lucy's, were fixed on the front door where a man stood somewhat stoically; and Lucy found it sexy, the way he looked straight at her with droopy eyes.

"_Aling* Rosa_," he said, apparently that was the middle-aged woman's name and she stiffened upon hearing it, "Please take her things up Miss Layla's room." He was speaking in pure English, probably to be polite to Lucy, and she felt relieved to know at least one person who can converse with her normally.

"Ah, sir? Yes, sir!"

Aling Rosa and all the others immediately grabbed Lucy's luggage and made their way inside the villa. Meanwhile, Lucy and the stranger with the droopy eyes were still staring at each other.

The blonde felt a little self-conscious under his stare. "Y-You speak fluent English, right?"

"Yes," he replied.

"_Great_," she muttered under her breath. "Uhm, I'm sorry but who are you?"

The young man started to tread down the stairs, stopping in front of Lucy. Two ebony eyes beneath glasses gave Lucy chills as they bore holes on her face.

"_Gray Fullbuster_... I'm the current caretaker of the villa and the farm..."

_Current_? "What happened to the _previous_ caretaker?"

"_Retired_," he said and heaved a sigh, pushing his glasses up the bridge of his nose. "Well, welcome back to Hacienda Lucky." Somehow, he did not sound very welcoming.

"Thanks, I guess...? Sorry if I came here without prior notice, I—"

"No worries," Gray assured. However, Lucy was not pleased with the way he cut her off. "Your father called last night and said you would be arriving today so we had time to prepare. Though not that much."

"He called?" she asked him, "_He knows I'm here_?"

"Apparently so," Gray said. "Well, Miss Heartfilia, if you don't want to stay there all night, I suggest you come with me. Dinner is waiting."

He turned his back in a graceful (and 'sexy' was once again a word that crossed the blonde's mind as she watched) manner. Lucy followed inside after him.

* * *

Lucy had made quite a few observations over dinner, as there was nothing to do when you're eating together with a stranger in a small round table filled and constantly re-filled with sumptuous dishes.

One, Gray Fullbuster was _not_ a native. This, Lucy concluded after seeing him up close and staring at his handsome features for quite some time. Though black hair and eyes were the norm at the place, his eyes were far too deep and his nose too well-shaped to be there. His skin, too, though tanned, surely wasn't of the norm, which was a beautiful hue of brown.

Two, he was a very suspicious character. He himself said he knew her father; that meant he was planning something. And the way he would glance up at Lucy every now and then was just proof that he was up to no good. The blonde made it a point to make sure she asks him about that later.

Three, _damn_, he was good-looking.

Four, _damn, all her observations were about the mysterious man_. She immediately scolded herself in her mind, how easily she gets attracted by people who are of above-average beauty.

She stole a glance at him again and saw that he had finished his meal... and was now looking at her nonchalantly. She jerked in surprise and swallowed without chewing.

"I-Is something wrong?" she asked and pushed her plate away, her appetite gone.

"I was just thinking how long you'll survive here," he commented with a smug smile. "You look like someone who can't handle the simple life even if you wanted."

Okay, that was extremely rude—and _straightforward_!

"Well, I'm sorry to disappoint you but I'm actually good with things like these," she scoffed.

"You have a bitchy voice, anyone tell you that?"

"Oh, _who asked you_?" She paused and listened to her own voice; unfortunately, Gray was right and she swallowed.

So those three taxi drivers _were_ scared.

The other smirked, content. Lucy was starting to think that he's probably a sadist and the thought was not reassuring.

"Well, if you're done eating we can go up to your bedroom so you can rest."

Seeing as there was no point in trying to argue, Lucy stood up and followed after Gray's lead. They left the kitchen and returned to the open space by the front door.

"As you can see, the first floor of this home holds the kitchen, the dining area, the living room, and the household help's quarters," Gray's hand gestures were sloppy and lazy as he pointed here and there in all directions.

The two came upon and started to go up the staircase, portraits of members of the Heartfilia family lined up on the walls. Layla was in each and every one of them.

"Your room for the whole duration of your stay is the master's bedroom. We haven't touched anything except when cleaning it so I hope it suits your tastes.

"The only occupied rooms on the second floor are mine and yours so if you need anything, I'm the first person you can see. There's only one bathroom up here so you'll have to get used to sharing with me."

"_What_?" came her protest. "But I'm a lady!"

"Welcome to the simple life..." he said sarcastically, "You know what? I changed my mind… I think you won't last even two weeks here."

"Hey, watch the sharp tongue, buddy," she warned. "And for your information, I can last longer than that here—much longer!"

"_We'll see_..." he said.

"Hey, I can see you're not from around here, either," she suddenly said out of curiosity, "What brought _you_ here?"

He sighed. "I came here four years ago for some time alone. When your father found out, he contacted me and asked me to manage the farm since the previous caretaker was about to retire and all..."

"Why you? Do you have a diploma in Business Management?" she asked, her voice high pitched and her statement disrespectful.

"I have a _master's degree_ in business management."

"_How old are you_?!"

"Twenty-eight..." Stunned, Lucy became quiet. "And I should probably tell you now, I don't appreciate answering personal questions. Since you're new here, I'd forgive it for now but tomorrow, know better."

Gray and Lucy stopped in front of a brown door and the raven-haired man turned the knob to let Lucy in.

It was a huge but simple room. A four-poster bed was at the center, white sheets covered the mattress and white curtains hanging on the posts. There was a closet to its immediate left and further off was a huge white dresser; Lucy could clearly remember it was where her mother would brush her hair at night before going to sleep. The windows were opened across the door, red curtains on the poles. The wall next to that was blank except for the few hooks where she could hang some things. A huge bookshelf filled with an enormous collection of books was pinned on the wall next to the door, making the room smell of old paper and glue.

But there was one thing Lucy looked for but couldn't find.

"Where's the airconditioner?" she asked, seeing an electric fan beside her bed.

Gray didn't even bother to hide the rude snicker. "Again, welcome to the simple life. We don't have those around here."

"This is a joke, right? I mean, we're in a tropical country with temperatures reaching some ninety degrees!"

"This is a _mountainside_. The fresh wind suffices," he said, and then he looked at her with eyes that challenged, "So… willing to affirm two weeks?"

"_You wish_!" she said.

As childish as it may seem, Lucy stuck her tongue at Gray and slammed the door shut in front of his face. Then, without even changing to her pajamas, the blonde collapsed on the soft bed. Now that she was in a mattress, her eyes were starting to get heavier and heavier.

Ah, she should have known 12 hours of travel would do that to anyone.

She took out her phone from her pocket and swiped to unlock it. She smiled when she saw several messages from her close friends:

**Natsu Dragneel  
12:26 PM  
**Ei, u coming later to Gajeel's?

**Natsu Dragneel  
01:35 PM  
**Luce, we're all here. U coming?

**Natsu Dragneel  
01:49 PM  
**Lucy? U there?

**Natsu Dragneel  
01:55PM  
**Luce?

**Levy McGarden  
01:57PM  
**Lucy I called your house and they told me you went away! How mean of you not to tell me… I wish you would have told me sooner… That's not fair at all...! Anyway, we're at Gajeel's… Wish you were here. Natsu is being all emotional… he's being a nuisance, really. Please at least tell him to chill... Call me once you're settled in, wherever you are... You can at least Skype, right?

**Natsu Dragneel  
01:58PM  
**You're out of the country? Where are you? What's going on?

**Natsu Dragneel  
03:02PM  
**U should at least call, u know?

Lucy smiled.

But before she could reply to any, she already dozed off.

* * *

**GRALU WEEK RUNS FROM SEPTEMBER 1****st**** TO SEPTEMBER 7****th****! For more info, please visit the tumblr blog**

**Fyeahgraluweek**

**GRALU FAMILY, UNITE~!**

***Aling **(ah-ling) – an honorific. I guess you could say it equates to madame or aunty.

_Please support my collab fanfiction with WolfieAnne,__** The Last Celestial Mage**__, and maybe my other FT fanfictions: __**Going, Going, Gone; Another Shot at Love, Good Taste, Massage?, Girls and Shopping **__and __**Starstruck!.**_

_If you are interested in my other works not stated above, please go to my FanFiction profile: /~weirdoblabber_


	3. Some sort of demi-god

**GraLu Week is still running, folks! Let's spread the GraLu love! September 1****st**** to September 7****th****! See you!**

**PS, I don't know when but I will be updating Going, Going, Gone. Thank you, Emil C, for the encouragement and the suggestions. Much love and thanks!**

**Disclaimer: **We do not own Fairy Tail. We are sorry. We will eat now.

**Chapter Three:**

She watched as the round orbs on the screen chased each other on a fixed circular path. After around three seconds, the same pop-up saying 'Failed' appeared on her screen and Lucy let out a frustrated groan. She immediately stood straight up from her prone form.

Sending messages to her friends had been difficult. They rarely got through. So she finally gave up, made her bed and, when she was more-or-less satisfied, she walked out of the humid room.

Day two at Hacienda Lucky had been, as she expected, hot. It was only eight in the morning but the weather was already warm and sunny with hot, dry air scratching against Lucy's porcelain skin. She complained to herself as she made her way down to breakfast.

Upon arriving at the table, one of the plates had already been used; Gray 'The Sadist' Fullbuster wouldn't be joining her for breakfast... _good_.

The blonde sat down on the wooden chair, letting her hair cascade down just above her elbows and she started to eat. A little while later, Aling Rosa, the lady the night before graced her breakfast with slices of fresh fruit.

"Good morning, Miss Lucy," the woman greeted. She was looking as jovial as the night before, "Did you fall asleep good?"

Lucy smiled at her choice of words but gracefully replied, "Yes, I slept quite _well_ last night. Though it was a bit hot..."

"Hot? Ah, yes... _Hot_... But the wind at night is nice, no?" Aling Rosa started to pour down orange juice on the girl's tall glass.

She nodded in reply. "Ah, how do you say 'good morning' here?" she asked.

"_'Magandang umaga'_," the woman said smoothly, like she was speaking in Spanish. Lucy repeated her statement, but with great difficulty because of her accent. "_Megendaeng umaega_," it sounded in her ears and they both laughed at her futile attempts to say 'ah' instead of 'ae'.

"By the way, Aling Rosa, where's Gray?"

"Ah, si Sir Gray? He's in Area Three."

"Oh..." she said, then added, "Area Three is _where_...?"

* * *

Following the trail to Area Three was more fun than Lucy expected. Though she still wasn't able to send her text message, the way there compensated for her frustration and she almost completely forgot about it.

For example, it was her first time seeing a domestic water buffalo they call a _carabao_; it was treading the same path, pulling a cartful of mangoes. There was a man riding on its back who maneuved the animal as if it was the easiest thing to do; and when Lucy tried to say 'Magandang umaga' to him, he replied with a toothy, "Magandang umaga rin po, ma'am!" Not that Lucy knew what all the other words meant, but she somehow guessed that it was a way of saying 'good morning, too'.

It also made the girl's heart swell to see children not older than seven running around with differently-colored kites tied to cans. It was an unusual sight in that day and age when children's games involved little physical activity and mostly of tablet computers. She once again greeted them and they said the same thing the man on the carabao did.

The wind brushed softly on the girl's skin, the sun was being filtered by the shade of the mango trees. Like the night before, Lucy could faintly hear the distant sound of singing, and she wondered whether it was a normal occurrence there. Back in her hometown, it was rare to have such simple sing-alongs.

Finally, after what seemed like fifteen minutes of walking, she found The Sadist talking to a young man wearing a dirty three-fourth sleeved top and cropped jeans. Lucy got close enough to hear a little bit of their conversation, and although she didn't understand what they said, she guessed it was a little less than happy.

"What's going on?" she asked, interrupting Gray mid-sentence. He turned to her with a look of surprise. "_Well_?"

"It's business... None of yours, though..."

"It _is_ my business! I'm a Heartfilia, _remember_?!"

Gray heaved a sigh that looked like he mentally cursed her for being so smart. "Area Three's crops aren't ready for harvest and so we'll have around twenty to thirty percent less to send to the markets this week."

"When will they be ready?" she asked.

"I was just talking to Anton here and he says a little over next week." He gave a gesture to point to Anton, the young man behind him.

"Why don't we reduce the amount we'll send for each buyer? I know it's risky and I must be intruding for saying this, but I'm sure it's our safest option for now." Gray looked at her quizzically. "I have a degree in business management and a minor in accounting. I don't have a master's degree, though."

This time, he gave a chuckle. "Okay, Ms. Heartfilia... I was going to distribute the stocks to the bigger buyers only but since you've so kindly graced us with your suggestion, we'll do just that."

"No, _wait_!" Lucy blurted out in an attempt to change his mind, "I take it back! Let's go with your idea!"

He shrugged and turned to Anton. Gray gave him instructions Lucy couldn't understand and then turned back to her. "It's done."

"What did you tell him?"

"To follow your instructions..."

"_What_?!" she exclaimed. "B-But it was an amateur's decision! I said—"

"It's fine, it's fine... We'll just experiment... If things go well, then hooray for you. If not, then we have _you_ to blame.

"Doesn't that sound exciting?" he asked, a wide smile on his face.

_Truly a Sadist._

"I have a feeling that you hate me," she spat.

"I _don't_," he said smoothly, pushing his glasses up. "I just don't like you... Or, rather, the way you'd come busting in here with your loud complaints and your busybodiness. It's ruining the peace."

_Rude._

"Well, I'm sorry... I just thought I had the right to come into our property any time I liked!" she harrumphed.

"Okay, relax, Ms. Heartfilia. No fighting," he said. "So? What brought you out here to look for me?"

Lucy took her phone from her pocket and put it close to Gray's face. "I don't have a signal. There's no network coverage."

"I can see that..." he said.

"Take me somewhere I can get coverage. I need to send a message and maybe a few calls..."

"Geez, why don't you just use the _goddamned_ phone? International calls aren't too difficult to make," he complained. She wondered how he could make profanity sound so charming—but then scolded herself for having such weird thoughts about The Sadist.

"It's a personal call. As much as possible, I don't want to use the farm's phone for something selfish..."

"Good point, princess," Gray said. "But can't it wait until later? If it's not obvious, _I'm working_..."

"How _late_ is later?"

"_Much_ later," came his teasing. He smirked and waited for her to react. _But no_. She wouldn't let him win that easily...

Lucy smiled instead and said, "Okay!" If she was going to stay there for long, she would have to try and not let him manipulate her so easily.

The blonde turned around, whipping her hair as she did, and walked away fast enough not to see Gray's smile curl further up his cheeks.

* * *

"I'm warning you now, the nearest tower isn't so near," The Sadist said on the way out of the villa.

"Define that...?"

"Around twenty minutes on foot. It's an uphill climb for the most part," he explained and he watched, amused, as her face contorted to a look of disbelief. "Fifteen minutes if we ride a carabao cart for the first half of the journey."

"_Ooooh_!" she beamed. "I'd like to try riding the cart!"

"You sound excited..."

"None of your business!" she pouted; but she was, in fact and without a doubt, excited. "Now take me...!"

He sighed. "Follow me..."

It was a very hot two o'clock when Lucy and Gray finally got away from Aling Rosa's cooking: a sumptuous lunch followed by dessert and not two hours later, a _meryenda_ which was their way of calling snack time. It was surprising how, even though Gray had authority over the house help everywhere, Aling Rosa was the sovereign power in the dining area. She gave The Sadist such a yelling that he finished two bowlfuls of pasta. Lucy, being the foreigner, got off with finishing just one. When the Aling Rosa went back to the kitchen for another helping, the two got along on one thing and skedaddled out of the villa to the carabao carts.

"Magandang hapon po, ser Gray!" said the man on the carabao. The cart it was pulling stopped right in front of the two and Gray hopped on effortlessly. The wooden box creaked, the animal made no complaint about the additional weight, and Gray was holding out his hand to her.

"Madame?" Lucy raised an eyebrow and disregarded his extended arm. She grabbed hold of the cart and pulled herself up with much difficulty. "_Or not_..."

The blonde sat on the cleanest part of the cart, beside Gray. She heard the man riding the carabao click his tongue and make a whipping motion toward it and they started to move, ever so slowly, forward.

The scorching sun was still way too bright but Lucy didn't mind. She was having much fun watching the trees and feeling the soft breeze. The sound of cicadas could be heard vividly all around her and some people they passed by would share in her simple joy. She didn't even snap at Gray when he put a stinky straw hat over her head.

They hopped off the cart at a narrow trail just beside the old cemetery and continued their journey on foot. It took about ten minutes until they finally reached the top of the hill, to a small shed. From there, Lucy could see the red-and-white tower.

"This place is so peaceful," she said, and made herself comfortable by sitting on the shed's ledge. She took off the straw hat and placed it beside her.

Gray chose to remain standing, and he leaned on the post, arms crossed on his chest. He said nothing but just looked around at the lush trees and the blue sky painted behind all the green. A small smile made its way to his face.

"You can smile," Lucy said.

"As far as I know, yes, I can..."

She rolled her eyes and made another attempt to send a message. When it notified her that it was successfully sent, she gave a small squeal of joy.

"Oh, thank goodness!"

"So you're good?"

"Yeah, I think so..."

"_Good_!"

Lucy pinched her eyebrows. "What? No rude comments? No... smart retorts?" She was a bit disappointed that he was being a bit nice.

Gray shook his head in reply. "_None_."

Lucy narrowed her eyes, suspicious. "Strange..."

"I just thought that if you're going to stay here for not longer than two weeks, there's no point in making your stay miserable," he explained. "Besides, you're probably having a hard enough time without your internet connection and your constant text messaging."

"I—" she was interrupted by the incessant beeping of her phone. One message after another flooded her inbox. "'Scuse me for a moment..."

**Natsu Dragneel  
10:16AM  
**Hey lets grab sme coffee later 2night!

**Natsu Dragneel  
10:17AM  
**Lucy? Howre u doing ovr there?

**Gajeel Redfox  
10:17AM  
**Heard from Levy you were out of town. How's the country? Gihihihi!

**Lisanna Strauss  
11:00AM  
**Lucy, can I borrow a few books?

**Natsu Dragneel  
11:01AM  
**Wre all havng coffee. Its not the sme w/o u. : (

**Levy McGarden  
11:01AM  
**Coffee...?

**Natsu Dragneel  
12:00PM  
**Be sendng u coffee session pctures so u dnt miss out.

"_Wow, Natsu_..." she smirked. Her friend has always been the type to worry a lot but she never got used to his overprotective nature. She hastily typed a reply before going back to Gray. "Where were we?" Looking up, she saw that he was smirking, too. "_What_...?"

"Like I said... _Two weeks_..."

Lucy smiled mockingly at him. "Yeah, _you wish_..."

Gray breathed out and dusted his shoulder. "Well, if everything's in order, I guess I should go back to my job."

"What?"

"Unlike you, I have a steady occupation..." he said, "I suppose you can find your way back by yourself?"

Lucy had doubts; but she wanted so bad to wipe the smug smile on his face that she said she could. "_Easily and without fail_..."

"Right..." Gray replied. "Just don't stay too long... It gets hard to see in the dark without a flashlight."

"Don't worry," she waved her phone at him, "I've got one right here..."

Without another word, The Sadist turned around and started his trek back to the villa. Meanwhile, Lucy's phone let out another succession of beeps.

* * *

Gray had a scowl painted on his face. The setting sun reflected in his glasses and so he took it off, annoyed.

He heaved a disgruntled sigh before shifting his position on the couch.

No, it still wasn't comfortable. He shifted again, this time facing the grandfather clock by the front door of the Heartfilia villa.

_Five-thirty._

And you would think that in three hours, that girl would have come back.

But no, Lucy Heartfilia was a true puzzle. He couldn't predict her actions unless it had something to do with irritating her.

He bit his lower lip.

"Sir Gray?"

"_What_?" Gray's head snapped, irritated, to the direction of the voice. It was Aling Rosa. Realizing that his actions weren't so polite, he apologized in vernacular. "_Pasensya na po_..."

The woman smiled and handed him a glass of water. "Tubig po, para kumalma naman kayo (**Water, to calm you**)..."

He chuckled earnestly. "Ayos lang po ako (**I'm fine**)."

"Mukha po kasing alalang-alala kayo, eh (**You look like you're very worried**)."

"I'm not." Gray accepted the glass, looking away from the perceptive woman.

"'Di po nga ba (**Are you really not**)?"

_Was he?_

Nah, he isn't.

Aling Rosa turned toward the kitchen and bid him farewell. Her last statement before she completely disappeared was that dinner was going to be at six.

Huh, strange. He couldn't remember a time when the woman's cooking didn't send his mouth watering. Just today. All because that girl hasn't come back yet, and it's almost sun down. Does she think that she's in the safest place in the world? Doesn't she know that she's basically in the woods where wild animals are?

What the heck was taking so freaking long?

Gray yelled. He ruffled his hair in frustration.

And, before he could bring himself not to, he grabbed a flashlight and stormed out of the villa.

* * *

"_What did you say his name was_?" Natsu's voice was gruff and mechanical at the end of the line.

"Gray Fullbuster," Lucy replied.

"Grey as in _g-r-e-y_?"

"No, with an '_a_'."

"And how do you spell his last name?"

"F-u-l-l-b-u-s-t—_wait a minute, Natsu_. You're not going to _hack his private accounts_, are you?" Lucy stopped. She could hear the clicking of Natsu's keyboard as he typed at inhuman speed. "_Natsu_?"

"Chill, it's just a background check..." he assured. "_Ha_...! Well, whaddya know..."

"Natsu—!"

"Oh, Lucy... Don't worry about him," Levy butt in. "You know he knows his limits."

"Yeah, I do. I'm just a bit worried that maybe his concept of _'limits'_ isn't as narrow as mine."

"Do you or do you not trust me—? _Hello, there, college records_." The hacker's voice was sinister as he paused for a moment. Levy and Lucy were both waiting on his next words at their respective ends. "Huh. The guy's clean as a blank slate. Above-average grades, no disciplinary records—no, wait, there's one that involved a fistfight but he got in because he was trying to break them up... Graduated class valedictorian-seriously? What is this guy, some sort of _demi-god_?"

Lucy laughed. "I told you. He's just hard to get along with but he's _not a criminal_."

"_Still, Lucy_," Levy said, "I'm worried. If he's being so mean to you, don't you think you should just move out? You could go to another location."

"I'm fine, Levy," she said, "I like it here... The people are respectful of privacy, it's quiet, and so far my dad hasn't called me up of anything."

"Oh, yeah." Natsu sounded as if he was filling his mouth with chips, and Lucy could imagine it so well. "What's up with the arranged marriage thing?"

The blonde sighed. Not two hours ago, she had messaged both Levy and Natsu, her two closest friends, about why she suddenly ran away. Their response was no less exaggerated than hers and they were immediately connected in a conference call, courtesy of their beloved computer genius.

"I still don't know what to think about it," Lucy said, "I mean, I'm not ready to get married!"

Levy hummed a reply. She was definitely nodding. "Remember we still have to tour the world together!"

"_I know_!" Lucy exclaimed. "I can't believe what my dad was thinking! I don't even know the guy!"

"Davis Corp, you say?" Natsu said. The clicking of the keyboard was evident in the background again.

"Natsu, shouldn't you be on duty?" Levy asked.

"Meh, don't twist your tail feathers. They won't notice. Besides, I've finished coding the new virus for the next security test run so I should be good... Ah, _here we go_!"

"What? _What_?!"

"Know a guy named _Loki_?" asked Natsu. "Davis Corp heir. Background check is good. Wait, let me check his credit card use—ah, top grade hotels and restaurants only... _Hey, he owns a Ferrari_!"

"Oh, no..." Lucy mentally face-palmed. "I haven't met him but he sounds like a typical _ass_..."

"Lucy, _language_!" Levy reprimanded in a giggle.

"_What_? You know I don't like guys like those... They're too... _extravagant_!"

"Speak for yourself, sister!" Natsu joked. "Prada, Gucci, Chanel? _Remember them_?"

Lucy pouted. _Right_. Not that she could wash her hands at this. She, herself, liked premium-grade items. But... _Not that much_! For one thing, she limits her shopping to at least one luxury item in six months. "If I were there now, I'd be strangling you, Natsu..."

"Now, now... _No violence_!" came Levy's warning.

"Anyway, Lucy, is there any place closer to the villa that you can get network coverage?" asked Natsu, "I'm thinking the place where you're at isn't too safe to stay for long..."

"I don't know," Lucy said. "I could ask The Sadist later if he's in a good mood."

"Yeah, when you kick his ass, say hello to his wife for me!"

"_Natsu_!"

"_Sorry, Levy_!"

"Wait, what? He has a _wife_? I didn't—" a sound alerted the girl that she was running empty on battery life, "Wait, I've to hang up. My battery's dying."

"Oh, call us again when you can!" Levy said.

"You can call the villa's phone but only when it's evening here, okay?" she said and mentioned the ten-hour time difference. "Okay?"

"Okay," the two chorused.

"Love you both! Miss you!"

"Love you, too, Lucy!"

"Take care with that guy, okay?"

"Okay, bye!"

Lucy sighed as she ended the call. '01:52.16' it notified. So she and her pals have been talking for close to two hours; no wonder her ear felt numb. She looked up at the tower, the last rays of sunlight telling her it was time to go home.

The girl pocketed her phone, swiped the stinky straw hat beside her and then dusted herself before taking off.

She walked slowly at first. The sound of gravel crunching beneath her footsteps crackled in her ears. The cicadas sounded so close by and—_was that an owl just now_? Erm, there aren't any of those there, _right_?

The girl hastened her pace. Gravity was pulling her to the earth as Lucy made her downhill journey. Her heart beat fast in her chest, the darkness covering her like a veil. Her breath was hot against her face as she ran.

She realized that she was alone in the dark in a new place.

Running fast. Scared.

"Oh my God," she panted.

Lucy jumped and landed on the side of her foot, twisting it. She lost her balance and fell onto the mossy ground.

"_Darn it_," she breathed and rubbed the aching ankle, as if it would do some good. With all her might she stood straight up but found that her left foot was useless. She would have to limp back to the hacienda. With one hand on her dying phone as a flashlight, she scanned her surroundings to get an idea of where she could probably be.

In front of her, illuminated by the dull light from her phone, was nothing but the trail that seemed to lead on and on without end. To her right was an endless foreground of trees. She immediately turned away for fear that if she stared too long at the forest, something would eventually grab her; but then Lucy regretted it and wished she hadn't looked left.

She found herself staring at the gate to the cemetery. An eerie atmosphere filled the air and a chill was sent to Lucy's spine. Lanes upon lanes of tombstones and crosses, moldy and cracked with age numbed Lucy's senses. She couldn't look away. She just stared on, hypnotized by the creepy setting.

Fear rose up to her throat bitter as bile.

"Hey—"

A hand touched her shoulder and Lucy screamed. Her initial instinct to fight acted and she punched, remembering her black belt in taekwondo.

"_Hya_!" she yelped; her knuckles hit a face square on the nose. Her keen sense of hearing could faintly distinguish the cracking of soft bone under impact. "_Help! Pervert_!" she yelled and did a follow up kick to the man's sides.

"Sto—Stop it, you crazy woman! _It's me_!"

Lucy's ears rang and she pointed her flashlight to the man she just beat up. Although the nose was beautifully broken and bleeding, the messy raven hair and black eyes underneath spectacles made Lucy know it was Gray 'The Sadist' Fullbuster.

_Damn._

"_I'm so sorry_!" she said and repeated for too many times to count. "I'm really sorry! I didn't know—"

"Ah, shit! _Don't touch me_!" Gray complained and spanked her hand away. He tilted his head skyward. "That freaking hurt!"

"I-I'm really sorry! It's just—You surprised me and—_I'm really sorry, Gray_!" Lucy fought back the urge to laugh at his state.

Serves him right, no matter how pitiful he looked.

Gray made a dismissive gesture and pointed a flashlight forward. Just in time, too, and Lucy's phone finally turned off.

"Did you come looking for me?" she asked.

"Of course, moron. I told you not to stay until sundown!" Gray's anger vibrated like waves and hit Lucy. Guilt flooded her. "Now, come on and let's get going."

"Uhm..." she started, "I can't walk... I kind of... twisted my foot when I fell..."

The man was silent for a while. Then, "_Deal with it_," he said.

"_What_?! You're not serious, are you?!"

He sighed deeply, mumbled something that sounded like '_darned duties_', and knelt down. "Fine... Hop on..."

Lucy timidly positioned herself on Gray's broad back, both hands on his shoulders. With much ease, he stood up and they started walking.

"I'm really, really sorry... I _really_ am..."

"Shut up, okay? I'm really pissed right now."

Lucy jerked. His voice was stern and demanding. It made her powerless to retort. That, and she was really guilty for punching him and then kicking him twice.

And now, he was still nice enough to give her a piggy-back ride.

"Put something on that ankle of yours later."

"Huh?"

"Ice... Or something... If it's twisted pretty bad then I don't want any complications..."

"Uhm... Yeah, you, too... Sorry about the nose..." She could hear him growling. "I'm really sorry..."

"_Whatever_..." he said, "At least it was me... If it were some other guy with some other intentions, you wouldn't have been so lucky."

"Hey, now! I was beating you up back there. I think I deserve credit for my self-defense!"

"Yeah, right..." Gray's sarcasm was bitter and heavy, "You know what? Just go home. Don't wait until the two weeks are up and I can say 'I told you so'."

"For your information, I'm adapting pretty well to this place!"

"Wanna bet?" he said. "If you stay here for longer than two weeks, I'll take you to the city on a shopping spree.

"And if you don't, you'll be my slave for, say, two months?"

"What? No way I'm falling for some childish bet like that... And I thought you had a master's degree..."

"And _I_ thought you were confident on winning."

Lucy narrowed her eyes, thought about possibilities and then gave herself a mental pep talk.

"_Deal_..." she said, "But when I go shopping, I'll have to warn you, I have a very keen eye."

The road back to the villa was spent in silence. Gray's heavy footsteps fell on Lucy's ears. It was steady and strong, elegant and manly. She looked to the trail ahead of them illuminated by the flashlight; thought curiously about how pretty the break in black blanket of darkness looked, how much more the light shone when the dark was so prevalent.

She laughed and Gray asked why.

She didn't answer.

And the silence continued on.

* * *

**GRALU WEEK RUNS FROM SEPTEMBER 1****st**** TO SEPTEMBER 7****th****! For more info, please visit the tumblr blog**

**Fyeahgraluweek**

**GRALU FAMILY, UNITE~!**

**WEIRDO BLABBS: **I hope you guys don't mind me using the Filipino language more now. Expect that in the future chapters, you will see more of it. Of course, I will put in the translations when necessary. Thank you!

_Please support my collab fanfiction with WolfieAnne,__** The Last Celestial Mage**__, and maybe my other FT fanfictions: __**Going, Going, Gone; Another Shot at Love, Good Taste, Massage?, Girls and Shopping **__and __**Starstruck!.**_

_If you are interested in my other works not stated above, please go to my FanFiction profile: /~weirdoblabber_


End file.
